All Friends On a Powder Day
With the news of upcoming snow and once-in-a-lifetime turns, the dedicated MSU students I know all sorted their schedules to spend the week in Utah. Our initial goal was to drive the six hours south for an IFSA comp, but with its cancellation we switched the agenda to ski just for fun.
As the week got closer it started to become clear that this storm was no hoax, and in fact it might be one of the biggest storm cycles I’ve personally ever skied in. After 38’’ in two days at Snowbird the skiing was so good I almost couldn’t find the words to describe it. Despite freezing temperatures, ripping wind, and non-stop snow we couldn’t get enough.Â
Myself and the few other members of the MSU Freeride team that are here woke up at 5am to avoid the traffic in Little Cottonwood Canyon on Wednesday. After a few early morning hours in the Snowbird lodge we booted up to wait in line for the lifts to open at 9am. Continuous skiing in such deep snow had me smiling so wide my teeth were getting cold.
As the day went on, the runs just kept getting better. Every lap was already filled in again by the time the lifts had spun us back to the top, you can’t ask for much more than that.
All of us were fighting back against soaking layers, freezing toes, and foggy goggles because of all the snow.
Powder days are usually the most fun skiing, but they also come with the most difficult-to-solve problems. Wet layers suck and really the only way to alleviate this is bringing extra options. Lodge trips to switch out wet buffs and gloves are essential to last all day on a powder day.Â
Freezing toes are an endless problem that I have yet to find a solution for, but lodge breaks definitely can’t hurt. Foggy goggles are also a classic nag of overhead pow days and while they are sometimes unavoidable there are definitely ways to avoid them:
- Always take your goggles out of your bag to dry everyday after skiing
- Don’t wipe the inside of your goggles to protect the anti-fog layer
- If it’s snowing, keep your goggles on your face or in your jacket rather than up on your helmet
If it’s just one of those days and your goggles end up fogging, the hand-dryers in the lodge bathrooms are great ways to dry them out.
Overall, certain problems are unavoidable on these types of days but good snow and good people make it all worth it. I am grateful for the never-ending snowfall this week and my teammates that could also miss out on school.
I hope this season’s snowpack begins to turn around and that every ski enthusiast gets to enjoy a day like we had in Snowbird.
Leave a Reply